Sports

Posts tagged ‘Crossfit’

Last week I got an invite from Jorden to join the kick-off of the 30 day Paleo challenge at the Crossfit box (yeah, personal invites always work better!). My original plan for the weekend was to go to Texel and learn to fly, but since the wind was going over 45 kilometers an hour, that plan did not hold and there was no reason to skip on this kick-off. But I am not the kind of girl that goes to a kick-off and then just leaves it at that. Of course I am going to join the challenge. And you know what? I challenge you to join me too!

For me paleo is not new. I have been eating paleo and I have stopped eating paleo the last few years. For me the challenge is in getting enough food into my system without overloading on nuts and protein. I like the idea behind the paleo lifestyle. I like the food better than non-paleo food and I learned today that there is actually a paleo supermarket snack that will definitely help me with that last bit of staying out of the hunger-zone.

The challenge at the box is more than just the food. It is about being healthy. Therefore we all got / get a measurement of our body and today we tested our 1RM for the Squat, Overhead Press and Deadlift, as well as our time on the 1kilometer row. Also we are asked to get enough daylight and fresh air and enough sleep. All important aspects of healthy living.

Since I invite you to join me on this challnge, I will share my experiences with you during the upcoming weeks, including all the measurements and training progress and if I find enough time, including some recipes. I won’t post daily updates, because that would bore me out, but I will manage a weekly training and food diary (or at least aim for that…).

Paleo food workshop by Crossfit Bink 36 coach Marjolein Beukers

We had an awesome introduction today, I must say. We got information about how to eat paleo, we had a real food work-shop by coach Marjolein, we did the 1RM tests and we got information about supplements by CrossVitamins. Also we got to taste the awesome nākd. bars (did I mention they are delicious and that I am officially addicted? And that they are awesome and paleo?). For those who wanted it, there was a starters kit available. Though I am no paleo rookie, it is always good to get a challenge diary, paleo guide, paleo magazine, nākd bars and D3 and magnesium supplements and last but not least a cheat sheet to put on the fridge as a reminder.

30 day paleo challenge starters kit & Dino playing a games for cats game.

Tomorrow the challenge starts. Only paleo food for 30 days. Trying to get my sleep and going outside for my breaks to soak in some sunlight. I will have my body measurements upcoming week, but I did do the strength and condition tests. Down here are my results of today (none of these are PRs)

Three days to write about. Three days in which I tried to do little things to better the world. Let’s start with the beginning: Friday. Last week I decided to attend a course to learn more about Kettle bell training and how to coach people through the basic exercises. The fact that I subscribed was a combination of missing going to school, feeling fatigued by work all week and my body screaming for some exercise challenge. It was convenient to be a day off and since the course only started at 11:30 I had a good part of the morning for myself; time to clean the house a bit more and to think of what I would do for these 10 days.

As I was cleaning already, I figured I might as well go through my clothes in my closet to see what I could give away. I always bring my “old” cloths to the Red Cross, so they can re-use them. Mostly I take something from my closet an put it aside. If it stays aside for half a year, I donate it. If I start using the item again, I put it back in my closet. Friday I decided to me a bit more determined. Since there are quite some clothes that I haven’t worn in ages, I figured I’d better just bring them away immediately. This resulted in me walking to the donation point around the corner (yes, that is very convenient indeed!) and throwing away a good set of shirts, skirts and dresses.

This ritual reminded me of how we can re-use items; not only clothes, but also furniture, cars, bikes, and so many other things. My mother always donates her old clothes to me and since we have almost the same size, the clothes she shrinks out of, fit me perfectly. On my turn, I bring all the clothes that I end up not wearing to the Red Cross collection point and make yet another person happy with a single buy.

On Saturday morning I left for my training again and since I had a friend over Friday night, I felt broken. My body did not get enough sleep and my muscles were still recovering from all the kettle bell swings. As usual I cycled the 30 kilometres to the Cross fit box, which took me about half an hour more than usual. Time enough to think of other things I could do to better the world. My mind was quite blank and I did not want to repeat anything I already did since I also aim to inspire others. I needed fresh ideas. The idea of doing something today kept hunting me all through the day and it wasn’t until that evening that an opportunity presented itself. I was at the cinema with a friend, to celebrate his birthday, when I needed a little toilet break. Naturally I walked in, did my things and as I was leaving the room, some girls came walking towards the toilet. All I did was holding the door for them. Not much special, but a little courtesy can bring the world a long way. Like I mentioned before, sometimes the smallest things can matter and for these girls it did. They smiled and thanked me.

Working @ Sportcity Gouda

On to Sunday: Now, at first I thought I did not do anything today. That is the miraculous thing about bettering the world. Some things (like holding a door as well) come so naturally that you hardly notice that you did something. In my first draft of this blog, I wrote that I actually only did two days during the last three days, but then I remembered that I took some time after work at the gym to talk to one of the gym members about becoming a fitness instructor. I took my study books with me and gave her some time to go over them. I had already set up for her to meet one of the teachers on Friday and yesterday I explained some basics of human physiology, myology and anatomy.

For me, sharing information and knowledge, sharing experiences and philosophies / insights on subjects, comes naturally. Therefore I hardly noticed that this as well counts as an act to better the world. We are creatures who can do great things as long as we work together and share what we know and what we can do with others. Working together is one of the most powerful tools we have and by doing so, impossible tasks become possible. In this case the task was far from impossible, but creating the habit of sharing and working together is just as valuable.

So there you have it. My weekend. I wish you all a fantastic start of the week!